Wrexham man's fury as overgrown hedges cover road signs

A resident has blasted Wrexham Council for the “lamentable” state of grass verges and hedgerows in his village.

Mike Ingle, who lives in Glyntraian in the Ceiriog Valley, believes the state of the hedges and verges in the village is among the worst in the county of Wrexham.

He said the length of grass obscures signs detailing the name of the village and the speed limit.

A 30mph limit sign has been completely hidden by the overgrown foliage and Mr Ingle claims the council has said it does not have the funding available to cut the grass back.

Earlier this year Wrexham Council announced a reduction in grass cutting to save cash.

In May, the authority changed tack on the scale of the reduction to the grounds maintenance budget, meaning all areas would receive a minimum of four cuts for the 2014-15 financial year.

Before that climbdown some areas were only set for two cuts from April 2014 to April 2015.

Four cuts is still half the number for 2013-14.

The council had previously announced plans for a further £200,000 of cuts from its grounds maintenance budget for the 2015-16 financial year, but the decision was deferred at the May executive board meeting.

Mr Ingle said: “The notorious and lamentable state of the roads throughout Wrexham county is a matter of public record, and the Ceiriog Valley must be close to the top of the list.

“Here there is a legal 30mph speed limit sign which is completely obscured by the overgrowth.

“Of the many excuses that Wrexham Council have given for not maintaining the roads, one I have yet to hear is that they can’t find us.

“No doubt this will now come as the name of the village is also obscured.

“Wrexham Council claim they don’t have the money and Glyntraian, where I live, gets more than it deserves anyway because of the small population.

“They clearly haven't visited the area around Aberdaron on the Llyn Peninsula where the population density is even thinner, the roads are immaculate, and safe, and the verges – and the roads signs – are clear.”

A Wrexham Council spokesman told the Leader: “Mr Ingles’ comments and photographs have been forwarded to our environmental department.”

I can sympathise with this gentleman, as besides the road signs being covered by UNCUT greenery, the council should also be chasing people who let their gardens overgrow, blocking the view at junctions, which are blind enough, at the best of times. These finance cuts should be coming from the Council employees and Councillors wages first, not important, services.